Our girls were various princesses from our dress up box for trick or treating and for the ward Halloween party. (No pics). For Adam's school party for the kids, I didn't feel like buckling princess dresses and fairy wings into the carseats, so I made them put on Jane's shirts (I got a little crazy over plaid shirts for her this year) and tote some sticks around with some "dirt" on their faces. I actually liked it! But they had no idea what they were. I overheard Jane telling someone she was a "Bobo" and how it was a character on some cartoon she likes...I guess it might be a little young to have them beHOBOS.

Ah, young love.

Sarah is now Sarah Briggs!! Married to the fine Christian Briggs and what a beautiful day it was! Here is some proof:

Now I must confess.

I'm basically doing this post because I told my in-laws that I'd send pictures of our fun hats and the picnic we had and the wedding dress that my mom MADE TWO WEEKS BEFORE THE WEDDING. But I couldn't get the pictures through in a decent way in an email so I'm just directing them here. That is why this post will be less about the lovebirds and how lovely they were and more about the party planning. Sorry! I don't have time to be sentimental. I have to go to bed.

So.

Here's a shot of the back of the dress:

They had a reception that evening in Fresno. But we didn't make anything for that really. It was catered dessert at the Downtown Club which was a really fun location (I think our Christmas card picture will come from there). So on to the picnic the next day in Monterey!

The Bride and her new family:

Alternative guest sign in: Write your sentiments on a Jenga block!

(side note: See the lacey overlay on this table? That was the OLD wedding dress...We don't waste things in the Bennion house.)

They had His and Her lunchboxes. We put all the food together.

Favors. His favorite Sees candy (Almond bud) and Her favorite Sees candy (Milk Bordeaux).

Gentlemen were encouraged to wear a dapper hat.

All of the pennant banners were handmade using the scraps from the pillow material. They will be used for a quilt for Sarah and Christian.

Each blanket had a big pillow (handmade) with a love quote on the back, a bouquet of flowers, and a platter of fruit. I monogrammed the napkins for those with a "B."

Picnicing. We really felt like we were back in time--it was so beautiful and charming.

Jane, Audrey, and Porter helped Tanner put up the badminton net. Don't they look so cute in their little hats?

Do I dare admit that we played croquet with British accents?

This is from the luncheon the day before, but I think my face is pretty classic. Really good portrayal of my feelings. See if you can guess what happened (and happens about every 10 minutes with this girl):

Hehe. Messy Mollie.

Potty Trained!

I put on my facebook status awhile back that Audrey was well on her way to being potty trained and that it was going to be really easy. Well, even if she was going to be easy, I still had to put in more than an hour's worth of effort into the process, which I didn't end up feeling ready for until a couple weeks ago. I finally had a good few days to concentrate on her with no upcoming trips to make us regress, and voila! She was definitely potty trained in less than a day, like the fabulous book I used promised. I don't even have to remind her to go! It's amazing! There have been a few accidents, of course, but Audrey has got this under control. It probably helps that she's been known to keep her potty quite close....(Don't worry, it really was just this once that she had the seat on her head. We haven't let her continue this very sanitary fad.)

California Trip

While Adam was in Africa for 2 weeks, I decided the the girls and I needed to go somewhere too. We announced to my parents that we were coming for just over a week, ready or not! We got there just in time to "Get the Party Started!" (We had an average of 1 official party each day, so Jane got used to saying that.) Gammie had these awesome party hats that the girls loved wearing every day. Here is a sampling from the dozen she had:

Porter's birthday was the week before we got there, but my mom surprised us all with a party at Chuck E. Cheese's for him. We had a great time!

The next party was my for Austin's birthday. It was at this party that we caught Maddie and her cousin Logan being affectionate. Spin the baby bottle, anyone?

I didn't get any pictures of the Relief Society birthday party, the Tea party, the Park party, or the Monterey Bay Aquarium/bonfire party (that was a bonfire on the beach after the Aquarium visit; not a bonfire IN the Aquarium). But rest assured, all that partying was so fun. We LOVED every moment. Of course, Audrey had to recuperate with her daily lounge on the grass. She literally did this every day in the midst of all the kids running around. I don't know wear she learned to sunbathe! Usually she didn't lie on the sewer plate, but I think it added some warmth to her laying out that day. Ahhh, gotta love some California rays.

THANK YOU for letting us visit!!

We are still alive

Maybe some of you were wondering if we were still alive. We are. Here is a photo of the girls in February. (I have been really terrible about taking pictures so this is the most recent I have on this computer.) Everyone is growing up and constantly on the go.

I'm constantly on the go after these 3 and Adam. I'm taking ballet classes again about twice a week which is a shock to my body but makes me very happy.

Adam is constantly on the go with school, scouts and us. He just got back from 2 weeks in Africa consulting a small business there.

Jane is constantly impressing us with her sophisticated grasp on interpersonal relations.

Audrey is saying some "r" sounds!!

Madelynn loves being outside, we've discovered with the advent of spring, and would be happiest if we never had to go inside.

Hopefully I can start making more regular entries!